Plant Roots May Cause More Carbon to Enter Earth's Atmosphere

It turns out that plant roots may actually accelerate carbon loss from soils. Although soil has long thought to be a semi-permanent storehouse for ancient carbon, researchers have found that it may just be releasing carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide is a major driver of the current warming of Earth's atmosphere. That's why accounting for different sources of carbon release is important. In this case, the researchers discovered that chemicals emitted by plant roots act on carbon that is bonded to minerals in the soil. These chemicals break the bonds and expose previously protected carbon to decomposition by microbes.

What's more intriguing is that a warming climate may actually accelerate this phenomenon. As warmer weather and more carbon dioxide in the air stimulate plants to grow, they produce more root compounds. This may release more stored carbon, which will enter the atmosphere as CO2 which, in turn, could accelerate the rate of climate warming.

"There is more carbon stored in the soil, on a global scale, than in vegetation or even in the atmosphere," said Markus Kleber, one of the researchers, in a news release. "Since this reservoir is so large, even small changes will have serious effects on carbon concentrations in the atmosphere, and by extension on climate."

The findings reveal another component that should be incorporated into climate models in the future. This could allow scientists to more accurately predict future warming.

The findings are published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

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